I'm pretty new to brewing, i have only brewed 2 batchs so far and they were only 2 gallon mr. beer batches. for this batch i will be using the mr beer fermenter but ive purchased extract, hops, etc. from my LHBS and will not be using the mr beer refills. ive got somewhat of a gameplan, but im not sure if im correct about all of it. what i do know is that i want it to be really really hoppy, and im told these are some good high alpha hops.

1- first im going to bring maybe a little less than a gallon of water to a boil. once it is boiling i will remove pot from heat and pour in my malt extract and add my first addition of 1 oz. of columbus hops in a hop bag.
2- at 15 minutes i will add 1/2 oz. of columbus hops.
3- at 30 minutes i will add 1/2 oz. of columbus hops and a 1/2 oz. simcoe hops
4- at about 38 mintues i will add 1 oz. cascade hops.
5- i will put about 1 gallon of cold water into my fermentor
6- i will fill a cooler with ice water and put the pot of wort in it for several minutes then when i notice the temp dropping i will pour it into the fermentor.
7- i will add cold or warm water depending on the temperature, to bring the level up to a little over 2 gallons.
8- as the wort is cooling i will add the last 1/2 oz. of simcoe hops without a hopbag hopefully to get a dry hopping effect.
9- when the wort has reached about 68-76 degrees i will pitch my yeast, let it sit for 5 minutes, stir very well and put the lid on.
10- i will then let ferment at about 65- 69 degrees for about 2 1/2 weeks and then bottle and let condition for about 3-4 weeks.

- what temperature should i boil the wort at? is its too cool or too hot can that make a difference?
- when making hop additions im planning on just adding all the hops to the same bag and clipping it off on the side of the pot. should i do this or simply add the hops without a bag and then pur it through the bag when adding it to the fermentor to kind of filter it out?
- what method should i use to chill the wort with minimal equipment?
- what would be a good yeast pitching temp for this yeast and brew?
- did i miss anything?

Those ARE all good hops for an IPA IMHO! But that's a whole lot of them for a two gallon batch. Even for an IPA. The one can of LME looks about right though. I'd start with some of the Columbus for bittering, and mix the rest in throughout the last 30 minutes of the boil. I'd also boil it for 60 minutes for good utilization of the Columbus. There is a pretty good free recipe calculator here:

Scale it for a two gallon batch and boil and play with your hop additions there. I don't know what you usually drink for an IPA, but around 70 IBU would be pretty bracing for this style. I don't think you'll need all four oz. for a two gallon batch, that's IIPA territory. But I would definately use all three varieties in small amounts.

Some other suggestions/answers:

Try to boil your full volume if you can to help with hop utilization. Start with 2.5 gallons to account for evaporation
Don't worry about the temp, if it's boiling that's the right temperature
Putting hops in a bag or straining them after is a matter of preference. Both work
To chill, fill your sink with ice water and let it sit until it reaches 70-75 degrees, replacing ice as needed

Boil temperature isn't a factor at all. Either it is boiling, or it is not. Bring it to a boil, and then add the first hops. Keep the boil going the entire time. I don't use hops bags, since I think it's a pain to keep opening the same bag and still keep the hops moving well with the wort. I'd just throw them in, then pour through a sanitized strainer into the fermenter.

You can easily chill your wort by using an ice bath in the sink. Fill the sink 1/2 full of cold water and ice and place your pot in it. Gently stir the ice bath (so that the cold water keeps in contact with the pot) and gently stir your wort with a sanitized spoon while it cools. Then, when it's below 70 degrees, you can add it to your fermenter.

Pitch at below 70 degrees, and try to keep it in the mid-high 60s.

__________________Broken Leg BreweryGiving beer a leg to stand on since 2006

ok, ill tone down the hops a little bit. but i dont think ill be able to do more than about a 1 1/2 gallon boil. what will happen if the amount of water used in the boil is too small?

You get some really thick carmelized wort. You can add water to top it up, though. I ran some numbers. Here's what I'd do in your position:

Bring water to a boil. Take off the heat and add extract. Put back on the burner, and bring to a boil. Add .50 ounces of columbus hops. Start the timer for 45 minutes. When you have 10 minutes left, add .50 ounce of simcoe hops. When you have 5 minutes left, add .50 ounce of cascade hops. Cool to 80 degrees, and add water to get to 2 gallons. Stir well, pitch yeast.

that sounds pretty good, im definately going to try and use as much water as i can in the boil. my pot selection is kind of limited but i think i can get a little over 1 1/2 gallons, but at the same time i dont want to have a boil over cause i used too much water, or on the other hand have the wort get carmelized.
as far as the ibu's, 51 seems kind of low. i just want a little more hoppiness, maybe somethin around 70 maybe even 80 if possible. ( ruination has got to be my favorite ipa at 100+ IBU) should i maybe add a extra oz. to the total amount of hops.